Having unveiled plans to release full-game digital downloads on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, Iwata defended the reasoning behind both retail and digital games having similar pricing.

Such a decision has been influenced by third-party publishers who all share differing opinions, some stating that they should cost less to download whereas others say it should be charged at the same price as a retail product.

“I find the value in being able to store a number of software titles in a hardware system and being able to bring them with me wherever I go and, therefore, I may choose this option,” Iwata explained.

“We do not hold such a premise that digitally distributed software has less value. In fact, as we have discussed this with a number of software publishers around the world, we have found that their opinions are completely divided on the topic of the price points of the digital distribution of packaged software.”

Related

After starting out with a Yellow Game Boy and a copy of Donkey Kong Land, Alex once hid in his room to play The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time one Christmas. Now he shares his thoughts on Nintendo Insider, keeping track of everything to do with Nintendo.